Fountain pen



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s.. L. RusKlN FOUNTAIN PEN Filed sept. 7, 1939 Simon L.Rws

April 3o, 1940;

lNVE TOR BY mm 5,2%..

40 thepoin of piercing automatically closes up so that Patented Apr. 30, 1940 l UNITED STATE y 2,199,293 FOUNTAIN PEN simon r.. New York, N. Y. Application September 7, 1939, SerialNo. 293,816

s ciaims.

rIfhis invention relates to'fountain pens.

A basic object of this invention is to provide a pen of simple and inexpensive construction and having optimum ink capacity.

5 Another object of this invention is to provide a pen barrel so constructed that Awhen mechanism of the self-filler type is embodied therein no packing is required to -prevent leakage of ink lo from the barrelhead.

object the provision of a fountain pen barrel made initially with both ends open, in one end of which is seated the usual pen-point and feeder assembly, while the other end is closed by an "i elastic, impermeable member, capable of and adapted to be pierced by a sharp-pointed instrument Without resulting possibility of leakage at the siteV of piercing, whether said instrument be retained by-the member or removed if therefrom.- The preferable material for this closure member is gum rubber, which is im.

permeable to ink and when pierced by a sharp instrument has the characteristic, when the in- 'strument is removed, of itself closing the hole u produced by said instrument; or, when the instrument is permitted to be retained by the mem-l ber, tightly grips the said instrument to make a water-tight and practically lair-tight seal be# tween the two.

3 One phase of my invention involves the provision of a fountain pen unit consisting merely of a barrel having at one end-the pen-point and feeder assembly and at the other end the closure member of the characteristics enumerated above.

Si with such a unit the pen may be fined with ink by piercing the said member with a hollow needle attached to -a bulb or other type of syringe fined with ink and injecting the ink mio the barrel. In this instance, when the barrel is filled, eedle is withdrawn and the hole at the no ink leakage occurs therethrough.

Another phase of this invention involvesV thev incorporation of self-fillerv means into the pen.

A simple and satisfactory device for this purpose comprises a stem passing through the said closure member and extending into the barrel, at the inner end of which stem is aiiixed a disc or washer type piston element, while the outer end of 5 the stem is adapted for manual operation in the usual manner.

a water-tight grip about the stern, no ink leak# age occurs from the barrel at that end and consequently the 'necessity for any packing is elimu inated. Since ordinarily this packing occupies a Y More specifically, this invention has for an Since the closure member has.

(Cl. 1Z0-47) to make the elasticclosure member cup-shaped and cementing theskirt thereof to the barrel. 'I'he thickness of the portion across the open top of the barrel should not be so thin as to tear readily and not so thick as to unduly resist penetration by the needle or the stem, as the case may be; nor unduly resist reciprocation of the stem. v Nor should the closure cap be so elastic as to be unduly distended by the reciprocal movement of the stem, since lthe closure member is not relied on as a means in expelling air from the barrel. y

When the self-filler mechanism is employed, the diaphragm part of the closure member is made thick enough to support the stem in an` upright position and toreasonably resist any side play thereof. The stem should be made as thin as practicable consistent with the required amount of rigidity to permit the stem to be reciprocated without requiringundue force. A

suggested substitute for gum rubber out of which u to form the closure cap is the rubber-like Vpolymethylacrylate derived casein; .other equivalent 1 which is incorporated a suggested and practical c form of .self-filler mechanism.

Referring to the Iseveral figures, my fountain pen comprises a barrel VI made with both ends open, in one end of which is placed. the pin-point l2 and feeder 3 assembly, while the other end is capped with a cup-shaped closure member l made of gum rubber or equivalent material, providing a penetrable diaphragm portion 5 across theopen end of the barrel. The skirt B of the member 4 is preferably cemented, as indicated at 1, to the barrel, and the rim of the member 4 is provided, 5

for preference, with a'bead 8. In' this form, the pen may be filled by piercing the diaphragm portion 5 through with a hollow needle 8 attached to the bulb i0 of a syringe Il (Fig. 2). When the needle is removed, the hole produced by the piercno ink-leakage occurs therethrough.

In Fig` 3, the top of the barrel has a set-back extension Ia for receiving the member 4, while in Fig. 4, the barrel is formed with a bead I2, while the rim of the member 4a is formed without a bead.

In Fig. 5 there is disclosed a self-filling mechanism associated with the basic unit shown in Fig. 1. This mechanism comprises a plunger r piston I3 consisting of a stem I4 at the inner end of which is mounted a piston head I consisting of a disc or washer I6, of rubber or other suitable material, positioned between the flanged end I1 of the stem and a nut I8, preferably of the self-locking type, threaded on the portion I8' of said stem. The nut I8 is threaded down tightly so as to clamp the washer I6 securely i in place, and the nut I8 and flange I1 are of extensive width to hold the washer I6 rigid against deformation. The upper end of the stem is pointed, as shown at I9 and screw-threaded as shown at 20, below the pointed end for a predetermined distance. In placing the plunger into the barrel for operative use, the said plunger is pushed, piston head first, into the barrel before the cap 4 is attached.I The said cap is then centrally positioned over the pointed end of the stem and the cap forced down, causing the point of the stem to penetrate through the said cap. The cap is then cemented, or otherwise attached, to the barrel, as shown in Fig. 1, 2 or 3. A nut or internally threaded washer 2| is then spun down the threaded portion of the stem. A reciprocable tubular member or headed sleeve 22 is then slid over the barrel I, the head 23 of which member 22 isprovided with a central bore 24 communicating with an enlarged counterbore 25. When the said sleeve is in telescoped position over the barrel the upper end of the stern projects through the bore 24 and into the counterbore 25. The shoulder 26 cooperates with the washer 2| to limit the downward movement of the sleeve, while the said shoulder acts as a stop for an internally-threaded cap 21 which threads onto the portion 20 and has a slotted head for the accommodation of a screw-driver. The head of the cap 21 can be made polygonal in shape so as to permit it to be manipulated by the ngers. With said cap 21 tightly screwed down the stem is held firmly attached to the headed' sleeve.

Preferably the internal diameter of the sleeve 22 is suchthat it is somewhat less than the external diameter of the beaded portion of the rubber cap 4, so that there will be a snug fit between .the two. This fit should, by preference, be tight enough to prevent undesired or accidental movement of the sleeve along the barrel. The diaphragm portion 5 of the cap 4 should be of sufiicient thickness to resist tearing when pierced by the needle or stem aforesaid, though not so thick as to require undue force to secure reciprocation -of the plunger.

Should it be necessary-to replace the rubber cap or parts of the plunger, access thereto for this purpose is readily achieved by removing the cap 21. This permits the sleeve 22 to be removed, exposing the rubber cap, and enabling both the screw-threaded section 2,199,293 ing act immediately closes up by itself so that latter and the plunger to be removed for repair or replacement needs.

The lower end of the sleeve 22 is tapered somewhat so that when the sleeve is retracted to the full intake position (shown in dotted lines in Fig. 5 in part full position), the said tapered end will come in contact with the head 8 of the cap 4, the limit of retraction being Indicated by the resistance offered by the bead against further withdrawal, though the sleeve can be removed by forcing retraiction. K

The bead 8 has another function: that of acting as a shock absorber should the pen be dropped, thus assuring against possiblebending or breaking of the stem.

Positive provision against involuntary movement of the sleeve and plunger is made by pro viding the upper portion of the barrel with a Ib and the lower end of the sleeve 22 with screw-thread 22a and screwing the said sleeve-end onto the section Ib of the barrel.

Having described my invention, what I claim is:

1. A fountain pen comprising a barrel, a penpoint and feeder assembly mounted in one end thereof, a cup-shaped gum rubber closure member over the other end thereof, said member having an external annular bead around the skirt thereof, suction-creating mechanism mounted'ln said barrel and having a stem projecting through-said member, and a reciprocable tubular cap having a restricted mouth connected to said stem and extending down the barrel in telescopic relation therewith beyond the said bead, said bead being in frictional engagement with the inside of said reciprcable member and acting as a stop for said cap.

2. A fountain pen comprising a rigid tubular barrel having a pen point and feeder assembly mounted in oneend thereof and a self-closing and impermeable cap positioned over and clos#` ing the opposite end of said barrel.

3. A fountain pen comprising a rigid tubular barrel having a pen point and feeder assembly mounted in one end thereof and a gum rubber cap closing the opposite end of said barrel.

4. A fountain pen comprising a rigid barrel having a pen point and feeder assembly mounted in one end thereof, a self-closing and impermeable closure mounted upon the other end of said barrel and suction-creating mechanism detachably carried by and extending through said closure and being operated exteriorly of the cio,-

sure.

5. A fountain pen comprisinga rigid barrel having a pen point and feeder assembly mounted SIMON L. RUSKIN. 

